Sanitary product disposal containers and methods

ABSTRACT

Sanitary product disposal containers include an invertible container body having first and second ends, the container body including a first container wall having a first container wall exterior surface; a second container wall carried by the first container wall, the second container wall having a second container wall exterior surface; an end container wall extending between the first container wall and the second container wall generally at the first end of the container body; a concave sanitary product cavity formed by and between the first container wall, the second container wall and the end container wall generally at the first end of the container body; a container opening formed by and between the first container wall and the second container wall generally at the second end of the container body; and a container seal carried by the first container wall exterior surface of the first container wall and the second container wall exterior surface of the second container wall generally at the second end of the container body. Sanitary product disposal methods are also disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No.14/288,458, filed May 28, 2014, which in turn claims the benefit of U.S.provisional application No. 61/837,680, filed Jun. 21, 2013 and entitledMASK IT, which divisional and provisional applications are incorporatedby reference herein in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The background description provided herein is solely for the purpose ofgenerally presenting the context of the illustrative embodiments of thedisclosure. Aspects of the background description are neither expresslynor impliedly admitted as prior art against the claimed subject matter.

Illustrative embodiments of the disclosure generally relate to sanitaryproducts such as feminine hygiene products. More particularly,illustrative embodiments of the disclosure relate to sanitary productdisposal containers and methods which can be used to discreetly disposeof a sanitary product while eliminating leakage of fluids and odorswithout a user's having to touch or handle the product.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Sanitary product disposal devices are well known in the art.Conventional sanitary product disposal devices may, however, not beeffective in blocking odors and may not prevent the leaking of fluids.Moreover, conventional products may be cumbersome, inconvenient orindiscreet to use and may require that the user touch or handle the usedproduct prior to disposal. Additionally, conventional products mayinvolve complicated, expensive and overly-difficult assembly and/ordisassembly of parts.

Currently, there does not exist a suitable manner to dispose of usedfeminine sanitary products. Conventional sanitary products must bedisposed in the trash as they are not suitable for being flushed downthe toilet. Thus, the used products may emit a disagreeable odor and mayattract children and pets.

Accordingly, sanitary product disposal containers and methods which canbe used to discreetly dispose of a sanitary product while eliminatingleakage of fluids and odors without a user's having to touch or handlethe product are needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Illustrative embodiments of the disclosure are generally directed tosanitary product disposal containers which can be used to discreetlydispose of a sanitary product while eliminating leakage of fluids andodors without a user's having to touch or handle the product. Anillustrative embodiment of the sanitary product disposal containerincludes an invertible container body having first and second ends, thecontainer body including a first container wall having a first containerwall exterior surface; a second container wall carried by the firstcontainer wall, the second container wall having a second container wallexterior surface; an end container wall extending between the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall generally at the first endof the container body; a concave sanitary product cavity formed by andbetween the first container wall, the second container wall and the endcontainer wall generally at the first end of the container body; acontainer opening formed by and between the first container wall and thesecond container wall generally at the second end of the container body;and a container seal carried by the first container wall exteriorsurface of the first container wall and the second container wallexterior surface of the second container wall generally at the secondend of the container body.

Illustrative embodiments of the disclosure are further generallydirected to sanitary product disposal methods. An illustrativeembodiment of the sanitary product disposal method includes providing asanitary product disposal container, inserting fingers of a hand intothe sanitary product disposal container, grasping a sanitary productwith the fingers through a container wall of the sanitary productdisposal container, internalizing the sanitary product into the sanitaryproduct disposal container by inverting the sanitary product disposalcontainer and sealing the sanitary product disposal container.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Illustrative embodiments of the disclosure will now be described, by wayof example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an illustrative embodiment of thesanitary product disposal containers in an open position;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an illustrative embodiment of thesanitary product disposal containers in a closed position;

FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of an illustrative embodiment of thesanitary product disposal containers in an open position;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an illustrative sanitary productdisposal container with a user's thumb, index finger and middle fingerextending into the container preparatory to internalizing a sanitaryproduct in the container in exemplary application of the container;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the illustrative sanitary productdisposal container illustrated in FIG. 4, with the user grasping thesanitary product;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the illustrative sanitary productdisposal container with the sanitary product internalized in thecontainer and the container sealed;

FIG. 7 is a front perspective view of an alternative illustrativeembodiment of the sanitary product disposal container;

FIG. 8 is a right side perspective view of the illustrative sanitaryproduct disposal container illustrated in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of the illustrative sanitary productdisposal container illustrated in FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a left side perspective view of the illustrative sanitaryproduct disposal container illustrated in FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is a top view of another alternative illustrative embodiment ofthe sanitary product disposal container;

FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the illustrative sanitary product disposalcontainer illustrated in FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a side view of the illustrative sanitary product disposalcontainer illustrated in FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view, taken along section lines14-14 in FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a flow diagram of an illustrative embodiment of a sanitaryproduct disposal method; and

FIG. 16 is a flow diagram of another illustrative embodiment of asanitary product disposal method.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and isnot intended to limit the described embodiments or the application anduses of the described embodiments. As used herein, the word “exemplary”or “illustrative” means “serving as an example, instance, orillustration.” Any implementation described herein as “exemplary” or“illustrative” is non-limiting and is not necessarily to be construed aspreferred or advantageous over other implementations. All of theimplementations described below are exemplary implementations providedto enable persons skilled in the art to practice the disclosure and arenot intended to limit the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, theillustrative embodiments described herein are not exhaustive andembodiments or implementations other than those which are describedherein and which fall within the scope of the appended claims arepossible. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by anyexpressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field,background, brief summary or the following detailed description.Relative terms such as “upper”, “lower”, “front”, ‘rear”, “side”,“interior” and “exterior” as used herein are intended for descriptivepurposes only and are not necessarily intended to be construed in alimiting sense.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1-6 of the drawings, an illustrativeembodiment of a sanitary product disposal container, hereinaftercontainer, is generally indicated by reference numeral 1. As illustratedin FIGS. 1-3, the container 1 may include a pair of container walls 2which may be generally rectangular. The container walls 2 may be joinedalong a pair of side container edges 3 and a front container edge 4. Acontainer opening 5 may be formed between the container walls 2 at arear container edge 10. Each of the container walls 2 may have anexterior wall surface 6 and an interior wall surface 8 (FIG. 6).

A pair of container seals 7 may be provided on the exterior wallsurfaces 6 of the respective container walls 2 generally at or adjacentto the rear container edge 10. The container seals 7 may be any type ofseals which are known by those skilled in the art and suitable forsealing the container opening 5 with a liquid-tight and airtight seal.For example and without limitation, in some embodiments, the containerseals 7 may include a reversible compartment seal such as a ZIP-LOCK®seal which is widely used for sealing sandwich bags and the like. Inother embodiments, the container seals 7 may include an adhesive.

The container 1 may be fabricated as a small bag made of an opaque,liquid-impermeable material which blocks the release or emission ofsmells and fluids. In some embodiments, the container 1 may befabricated of a biodegradable plastic with elasticity similar to that ofa rubber glove. The container 1 may be fabricated in different sizeswith various dimensions depending on functional requirements.

As illustrated in FIGS. 4-6, in exemplary application, the container 1is used to dispose of a used sanitary product 12. Accordingly, asillustrated in FIG. 4, with the exterior wall surfaces 6 of thecontainer walls 2 facing outwardly, a user inserts her thumb 16, indexfinger 17 and middle finger 18 into the container opening 5 (FIG. 3) ofthe container 1 such that the container 1 is worn on the user's hand 15like a glove. The user then grasps the sanitary product 12 with thefingers through the container walls 2. Next, the user inverts, or turnsthe container 1 inside out, such that the exterior wall surfaces 6 nowface the interior of the container and the interior wall surfaces 8 faceexteriorly, as illustrated in FIG. 6. The container seals 7 on therespective container walls 2 are pressed together to seal the interiorfrom the exterior of the container 1, and liquids and odors are sealedin the container 1. Finally, the container 1 with the used sanitaryproduct 12 contained therein may be discarded.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the sanitaryproduct disposal container 1 provides an inconspicuous and sanitarymethod for disposing of used feminine sanitary products 12. The sanitaryproduct disposal container 1 can be packaged in a variety of waysdepending on the application. For example and without limitation, forhome use, multiple sanitary product disposal containers 1 may bepackaged in decorative boxes. For public restroom use, multiple sanitaryproduct disposal containers 1 may be packaged in a wall-mounteddispenser for convenience of use. Moreover, the sanitary productdisposal container 1 may eliminate the need to use toilet paper to wrapand conceal the used sanitary product 12 for disposal in a trashreceptacle and reduces the likelihood that the used sanitary product 12will be flushed down the toilet.

Referring next to FIGS. 7-10 of the drawings, an alternativeillustrative embodiment of the sanitary product disposal container,hereinafter container, is generally indicated by reference numeral 101.Unless otherwise noted, the container 101 may be fabricated of the samematerials of construction as the container 1 which was heretoforedescribed with respect to FIGS. 1-3. The container 101 may include agenerally elongated container body 118 having a lower container wall 102and an upper container wall 103. The lower container wall 102 may have alower container wall exterior surface 102 a. The upper container wall103 may have an upper container wall exterior surface 103 a. A pair ofside container walls 104 may extend between the lower container wall 102and the upper container wall 103. An end container wall 105 may extendbetween the lower container wall 102 and the upper container wall 103 atgenerally a front end of the container body 118. A container opening 106may be formed by and between the lower container wall 102, the uppercontainer wall 103 and the side container walls 104 at generally a rearend of the container body 118. As illustrated in FIG. 8, a lower wallindentation 107 and an upper wall indentation 108 may be provided in thelower container wall 102 and the upper container wall 103, respectively,at the container opening 106. Container seals 110 may be provided on thelower container wall exterior surface 102 a of the lower container wall102 and the upper container wall exterior surface 103 a of the uppercontainer wall 103, generally at or adjacent to the container opening106.

A lower wall gusset 116 may extend from the lower container wall 102beyond the end container wall 105. An upper wall gusset 112 may extendfrom the upper container wall 103 beyond the end container wall 105 andin spaced-apart relationship to the lower wall gusset 116. In someembodiments, a gusset indentation 113 may be provided in the upper wallgusset 112 for purposes which will be hereinafter described. A concavesanitary product cavity 114 may be formed by and between the endcontainer wall 105, the upper wall gusset 112 and the lower wall gusset116. The container 101 may be fabricated in different sizes with variousdimensions depending on functional requirements.

In exemplary application, the container 101 may be used to dispose of aused sanitary product (not illustrated). Accordingly, the hand of a useris inserted into the container 101 through the container opening 106such that the container 101 is worn on the user's hand like a glove. Theuser then maneuvers the container 101 until the sanitary product iscradled in the sanitary product cavity 114 between the upper wall gusset112 and the lower wall gusset 116, after which the user grasps thesanitary product with the fingers through the end container wall 105.The lower wall indentation 107 and the upper wall indentation 108 maycreate an easy-open tab for the container opening 106. Next, the userinverts, or turns the container 101 inside out, such that the exteriorwall surfaces of the lower container wall 102, the upper container wall103 and the side container walls 104 now face the interior of thecontainer 101 and the interior wall surfaces face exteriorly. The usermay grasp the gusset indentation 113 with the thumb of the opposite handto facilitate inversion of the container 101. The container seals 110 onthe respective lower container wall 102 and upper container wall 103 arepressed together to seal the interior from the exterior of the container101, and liquids and odors are sealed in the container 101. Finally, thecontainer 101 with the used sanitary product contained therein isdiscarded.

Referring next to FIGS. 11-14 of the drawings, another alternativeillustrative embodiment sanitary product disposal container, hereinaftercontainer, is generally indicated by reference numeral 201. In thecontainer 201, elements which are analogous to the respective elementsof the container 101 that was heretofore described with respect to FIGS.7-10 are designated by the same numeral in the 201-299 series in FIGS.11-14. A wall overhang 220 may extend from the lower container wall 202beyond the container opening 206. Application of the container 201 maybe as was heretofore described with respect to the container 101 inFIGS. 7-10. The container 201 may be fabricated in different sizes withvarious dimensions depending on functional requirements.

Referring next to FIG. 15 of the drawings, a flow diagram 1500 of anillustrative embodiment of a sanitary product disposal method is shown.At block 1502, a sanitary product disposal container is provided. Insome embodiments, the sanitary product disposal container may have adesign which is the same as or similar to the sanitary product disposalcontainer 1 which was heretofore described with respect to FIGS. 1-6. Atblock 1504, fingers on the hand of a user are inserted into a containeropening of the container. At block 1506, the user grasps the sanitaryproduct through the container wall of the container. At block 1508, thesanitary product is internalized into the container by turning thecontainer inside out. At block 1510, the container is sealed closed. Insome embodiments, the container may be sealed closed using a reversiblecompartment seal. In some embodiments, the container may be sealedclosed using an adhesive. At block 1512, the container may be discarded.

Referring next to FIG. 16 of the drawings, a flow diagram 1600 ofanother illustrative embodiment of a sanitary product disposal method isshown. At block 1602, a sanitary product disposal container is provided.In some embodiments, the sanitary product disposal container may have adesign which is the same as or similar to the sanitary product disposalcontainer 101 which was heretofore described with respect to FIGS. 7-10.In some embodiments, the sanitary product disposal container may have adesign which is the same as or similar to the sanitary product disposalcontainer 201 which was heretofore described with respect to FIGS.11-14. The sanitary product disposal container includes a containeropening and a sanitary product cavity opposite the container opening. Atblock 1604, fingers on the hand of a user are inserted into a containeropening of the container. At block 1606, the user maneuvers thecontainer such that the sanitary product is cradled in the sanitaryproduct cavity of the container. At block 1608, the user grasps thesanitary product with the fingers through the container wall of thecontainer. At block 1610, the sanitary product is internalized into thecontainer by turning the container inside out. At block 1612, thecontainer is sealed closed. At block 1614, the container may bediscarded.

While illustrative embodiments of the disclosure have been describedabove, it will be recognized and understood that various modificationscan be made in the disclosure and the appended claims are intended tocover all such modifications which may fall within the spirit and scopeof the disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sanitary product disposal method, comprising:providing a sanitary product disposal container having a containerinterior and including a first container wall having a first containerwall exterior surface, a second container wall having a second containerwall exterior surface, a container opening formed between the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall, a first wall indentationand a second wall indentation in the first container wall and the secondcontainer wall, respectively, at the container opening and containerseals on the first container wall exterior surface of the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall exterior surface of thesecond container wall, generally at or adjacent to the containeropening, the container seals traversing a length of the containeropening and a first wall gusset extending from the first container wall,a second wall gusset extending from the second container wall and asanitary product cavity formed by and between the first wall gusset andthe second wall gusset, a gusset indentation in the first wall gussetand a pair of side container walls extending between the first containerwall and the second container wall, with the pair of side containerwalls closing the container interior along the first container wall andthe second container wall and along the first wall gusset and the secondwall gusset; inserting fingers of a hand into the sanitary productdisposal container; grasping a sanitary product with the fingers througha container wall of the sanitary product disposal container; cradlingthe sanitary product in the sanitary product cavity between the firstwall gusset and the second wall gusset; grasping the gusset indentationwith a thumb of an opposite hand to facilitate inversion of thecontainer; internalizing the sanitary product into the sanitary productdisposal container by inverting the sanitary product disposal container;and sealing the sanitary product disposal container by pressing togetherthe container seals on the respective first container wall and thesecond container wall to seal the interior from the exterior of thecontainer, whereby liquids and odors are sealed in the containerinterior.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein sealing the sanitary productdisposal container comprises sealing the sanitary product disposalcontainer using reversible container seals.
 3. The method of claim 1wherein sealing the sanitary product disposal container comprisessealing the sanitary product disposal container using container sealsincluding an adhesive.
 4. The method of claim 1 further comprisingdiscarding the sanitary product disposal container.
 5. A sanitaryproduct disposal method, comprising: providing a sanitary productdisposal container having a container interior and including a firstcontainer wall having a first container wall exterior surface, a secondcontainer wall having a second container wall exterior surface, acontainer opening formed between the first container wall and the secondcontainer wall, a first wall indentation and a second wall indentationin the first container wall and the second container wall, respectively,at the container opening and container seals on the first container wallexterior surface of the first container wall and the second containerwall exterior surface of the second container wall, generally at oradjacent to the container opening, the container seals traversing alength of the container opening, and a sanitary product cavity oppositethe container opening and a first wall gusset extending from the firstcontainer wall, a second wall gusset extending from the second containerwall and a sanitary product cavity formed by and between the first wallgusset and the second wall gusset, a gusset indentation in the firstwall gusset and a pair of side container walls extending between thefirst container wall and the second container wall, with the pair ofside container walls closing the container interior along the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall and along the first wallgusset and the second wall gusset; inserting fingers of a hand into thecontainer opening of the sanitary product disposal container;positioning a sanitary product in the sanitary product cavity; graspingthe sanitary product in the sanitary product cavity with the fingersthrough a container wall of the sanitary product disposal container;cradling the sanitary product in the sanitary product cavity between thefirst wall gusset and the second wall gusset; grasping the gussetindentation with a thumb of an opposite hand to facilitate inversion ofthe container; internalizing the sanitary product into the sanitaryproduct disposal container by inverting the sanitary product disposalcontainer; and sealing the sanitary product disposal container bypressing together the container seals on the respective first containerwall and the second container wall are pressed together to seal theinterior from the exterior of the container, whereby liquids and odorsare sealed in the container interior.
 6. The method of claim 5 whereinproviding a sanitary product disposal container comprises providing asanitary product disposal container including a container body havingfirst and second ends; an end container wall extending between the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall generally at the first endof the container body, the sanitary product cavity formed by and betweenthe first container wall, the end container wall and the secondcontainer wall; and the container opening at the second end of thecontainer body.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein providing a sanitaryproduct disposal container comprises providing a sanitary productdisposal container including the first wall gusset extending from thefirst container wall beyond the sanitary product cavity and the secondwall gusset extending from the second container wall beyond the sanitaryproduct cavity.
 8. The method of claim 5 wherein sealing the sanitaryproduct disposal container comprises sealing the sanitary productdisposal container using reversible container seals.
 9. The method ofclaim 5 wherein sealing the sanitary product disposal containercomprises sealing the sanitary product disposal container usingcontainer seals including an adhesive.
 10. The method of claim 5 whereinproviding a sanitary product disposal container comprises providing asanitary product disposal container including a container body havingfirst and second ends; an end container wall extending between the firstcontainer wall and the second container wall generally at the first endof the container body, the sanitary product cavity formed by and betweenthe first container wall, the end container wall and the secondcontainer wall; the container opening at the second end of the containerbody; and a wall overhang protruding from the first container wallbeyond the container opening.